TITANIC has just sunk even deeper. This is how it should have been done.

Rating: Null/10 (21 November 2000)

I cannot believe i didn´t went to see this movie at the theaters ! THE LEGEND OF 1900, is one of the most beautiful and poetic movies in a very long time, (with the exception of Magnolia wich is also fantastic, but in a different style). But this one has one of the most unexpected and original stories i ever saw in a movie. But what is realy difficult to describe is the feeling which this movie conveys. It has an atmosphere of an haunted fairy tale but in a very poetic way, turning even the most normal events into some kind of enchanted moment. The movie is directed by Giusepe Tornatore the Italian director who created one of the most beautiful movies of all time, Cinema Paradiso. Strangely enough this was one of the reasons i didn´t went to see The Legend of 1900 at the theaters. I thought that after Cinema Paradiso, there was no way, the same director would be able to create another movie like that. Man, was i wrong !
I loved The Legend of 1900 so much, that i don´t know what i like best anymore. I think i only seen a story as poetic as this before and that was in Cinema Paradiso.
I´m not going to talk about the plot of 1900 because you can read it in all the other reviews. What i just want to say is that this movie has just sunk Titanic even deeper, for it has all the emotion and strengh that James Cameron never did achieve in his movie and being similar movies in atmosphere i think it´s fair to make a comparison and it´s also fair to say that THE LEGEND OF 1900, is far emotionaly superior to TITANIC in every aspect and every detail of its story. This movie is everything i was expecting to find in TITANIC and it was´t there.
I wish i could do justiçe in describing how beautiful The Legend of 1900 is, but this is one of those things you have to see for yourself to really appreciate, because i guess there are no words to describe, the poetry of so many of the scenes in this movie. The moment when 1900 falls in love is truly undiscribable. The way in which music is used in this story is simply a work of genius. And this soundtrack wipes the floor with all the comercial c**p that appears nowadays in the Hollywood movies.
The Legend of 1900 is to Music what Cinema Paradiso was to Cinema. Tornatore has done it again ! And as love stories go, this is one of the best i ever seen. Giuseppe Tornatore seems to have this gift to realy create extraordinary beautiful love stories without making them into Hollywood soaps and this is very rare this days.
And it´s not only the story that makes this such a good film to watch. Visualy its also trully impressive and glamorous. The production design and photography in this movie creates incredible visuals. Some scenes even look like classic paintings coming to life. And the cast is fantastic. I won´t name anyone in particular because all deliver a truly fantastic ensemble performance. Giuseppe Tornatore has created another unforgettable classic, that i can bet will be truly recognized as the mastepiece it is in years to come.
Unfortunately, because it isn´t an Hollywood product, the movie didn´t had the publicity or distribution, it deserved, and so i guess not many people got the chance to see it at theaters, but hey, it´s now out on DVD and in an incredible high technical quality edition (at least in region2) so please go and rent this movie. Buy it , in fact because you won´t regret it. And if you have a widescreen tv and a surround sound, you´ll go nuts with this film.
It´s movies like this that prove how fake the Oscars are. THE LEGEND OF 1900 is a masterpiece.